


Reunions

by Jestana



Series: SWTOR fics [22]
Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-23
Updated: 2018-04-23
Packaged: 2019-04-26 20:27:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14409960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jestana/pseuds/Jestana
Summary: Elara and Reynarden are finally reunited. Their reunion sets off a chain of further reunions.





	Reunions

**Author's Note:**

> Even though KotFE and KotET are not canon for my half siblings 'verse, the little we got for Elara and the trooper's reunion in game frustrated me. I wanted something that was a little more true to _them_. And other characters kept popping up their heads, demanding a cameo. So the story grew from four pages to fifteen total.

When Lana Beniko informed them that the Alliance commander was on his way, Elara couldn't deny the way her heart skipped a beat. It'd been so long since she'd seen her husband. Would he remember her? Did he still love her? She turned to look out the windows so the others wouldn't notice her struggling to compose herself. Elara remained facing that way even when she heard the flurry of activity that meant Reynarden had arrived. Much as she wanted to turn and face him, she worried that he would look at her and either not recognize her, or not care about her anymore.

"You didn't tell us you had company," Theron remarked, clearly meaning Elara and her Imperial counterpart.

Lana explained the situation and Elara reluctantly turned around, "Our trigger-happy friends sent these assassins, so I took them captive."

Registering what Lana had called them, Elara indignantly reminded Lana, "I told you, I'm no assassin. I've come to deliver a message from the Republic."

"Elara?" Reynarden asked, brushing past Lana, his surprise obvious.

She wasn't quite sure how to interpret his tone of voice, so she decided to remain as impersonal as possible. This really wasn't the way she'd dreamt of seeing him again. "When I'm a captive, I tend to prefer 'Captain Dorne.'"

"The sharpest knives hide behind friendly faces." Lana interjected dryly, looking between the two of them.

Elara studied Lana for a moment before looking back at Reynarden. "Charming company you're keeping these days."

"You're alive!" Reynarden's surprise gave way to pleasure and Elara wondered if he'd sweep her into a kiss if he could. "It's so good to see you..." he shook his head at the inanity of the comment, regardless of the truth behind it. "I don't even know what to say."

"I..." Unable to maintain her composure in the face of his honest happiness, Elara looked away. She blinked back tears stinging at her eyes. Clearing her throat, she looked back at him and said, "This probably isn't the time."

Quinn chose that moment to interrupt their conversation, his Dromund Kaas accent precise and formal and reminding her of her childhood. "I'm quite sure it isn't."

"Who are you?" Elara wondered if she imagined Reynarden's reluctance to turn away from her and focus his attention on the matter at hand.

Naturally, Elara knew that Malcom intended to propose an alliance with Reynarden. She suspected he'd have suggested it regardless of who was the commander. That it was Reynarden meant that he appealed particularly to their shared background as former members of Havoc squad. Elara had deduced that Empress Acina would propose the same, perhaps relying on the fact that Reynarden had allied with the Empire after Vaylin's attack on Voss. Knowing her husband, Elara figured he'd done it more out of necessity than anything else and that he would gladly change allies if given the chance.

He confirmed her suspicions when he announced, "We will ally with the Republic."

"Glad to hear it." Malcom nodded, looking very pleased.

"What a good little soldier you turned out to be," Acina sneered derisively. "Major Quinn, you have your orders."

Quinn stepped back from the holotable, activating a detonator that he must have had hidden somewhere on his person. An explosion nearby knocked all of them off balance. "For the Empire!"

He threw a flash grenade that blinded all of them for the precious few moments Quinn needed to escape. Elara rubbed frantically at her streaming eyes, not surprised that he'd had an escape plan in place. She certainly had! As Reynarden promised Theron they'd deal with Quinn later and Malcom that he'd help fight the Empire, Elara quietly sent a signal to the charges she'd set that disarmed them and made a mental note to remove them entirely later. When Reynarden turned to her, she was ready to accept his orders, happy to work with him once again. "Elara, I'm counting on you to defend my base." Relief flooded through her when he took her hand in his and squeezed gently. It was how they'd used to say 'I love you' when it wasn't the right moment to say it aloud. She returned the squeeze without hesitation, rewarded when he smiled at her. "We'll talk once the fighting dies down. I promise."

"I won't let you down," she promised him, conveying all the determination and love that she could. She gave him a stern look as she added, "And don't even think about dying on me, sir. I've come too far to lose you now."

He squeezed her hand one last time before reluctantly turning and leaving with Theron. Only once she couldn't see Reynarden anymore did Elara turn to Lana, ready to do her part.

*

Reynarden woke up to find his head in Elara's lap. It wasn't the first time it'd happened, but it'd been too long since the last time. "Hello, beautiful."

"Don't 'hello, beautiful' me," she told him tartly, belying the gentle way her fingers traced his tattoo. "You almost died. Again."

He rolled his eyes, catching her free hand with his and pressing a kiss to the palm. "That wasn't _my_ idea."

"I know." She blinked rapidly to keep her tears at bay. "I don't know what I would have done if we hadn't managed to save you."

Reluctantly, he pushed himself up into a sitting position and leaned in to press his forehead against hers, breathing in the familiar smell of kolto and soap that was uniquely Elara. "Don't think about it. I'm here, I'm alive."

"Standard kolto immersion treatment repaired the damage," Elara told him, squeezing his hand lightly. "I advise temporary implantation of polarized cranial implants to be on the safe side."

Not quite stifling a chuckle, he cupped his free hand around the back of her neck and teased her, "Sounds complicated. Any rules or regs I should be aware of before you start operating?"

"You're well beyond the reach of Republic regulations." She moved her free hand to rest over the base of his throat, closing her eyes as she told him what had happened since they last saw each other. "Malcom stepped in on my behalf and assigned me to his personal staff. He even gave me assignments that allowed me to continue the search." Reynarden smiled at that and brought her hand up to kiss the back. Elara tried to tug her hand free, but he refused to let go and she stopped trying. She continued her explanation, her eyes still closed as if she couldn't bear to look at him. "Even so... I had to stop searching eventually. I had to move on, focus on the future. And now you return as... this, when I have hundreds of soldiers depending on me." Finally, she looked at him again, her expression imploring him to understand. "I'd already abandoned you... I couldn't abandon them."

Still smiling, he moved his free hand to brush her cheek with his fingertips, wiping away the tears that had managed to escape Elara's self-control. "You have nothing to apologize for, Elara."

"I swore to find you," she told him, her voice full of self-reproach. "To rescue you, bring you home...."

When her voice trailed off, he told her, "Every time I thought it was over... I thought of you, and I kept going." She stared at him in wide-eyed surprise. "You got me here."

With that, he leaned forward to finally kiss her and Elara met him halfway. It was sweet and tender and far too short. They stiffened and drew apart at the sound of a cleared throat behind them. Elara had a small, warm smile on her lips despite her flushed cheeks and she reached up to trace the tattoo around his eye again. "I left some labs running. I'm going to check on them and try to find more options for your condition. I won't lose you again."

He kissed the back of her hand again, whispering so only she could hear. "I love you, Elara."

"I love you, too, Reynar," she whispered back, turning their hands so she could kiss the back of his.

With that, she reluctantly stood up and walked away. Reynarden watched her until Theron and Lana distracted him with a discussion about what had happened to him. As Malcolm approached, Lana asked if he trusted Elara. Glaring at her, he said, "She's my _wife_ and she's saved my life more than once. She'd never do something like this."

They accepted his answer and Reynarden turned to speak to Malcolm. He had a war to fight, but all he could think about was the fact that he had Elara in his life again.

*

Elara tried to focus on her work, but she was rather distracted at the moment. She'd finished her labwork and started typing up her notes and thoughts when Reynarden poked his head in and asked if he could sit nearby while he finished his own paperwork. _"I always focused better with you around, Elara. I hope it'll still be the same."_

Blushing, she'd nodded and he'd walked over to the bench pushed against the wall and sat down to begin working. Now Elara was intensely aware of Reynarden. He'd changed out of his armor and into civilian clothes. She wasn't sure if it was the clothes or his mere presence that was distracting her. Either way, she wasn't getting any actual work done. Giving a sigh of disgust, she turned off her datapad and tossed it on her desk.

"Everything alright, Elara?" Reynarden asked and she turned to see that he'd straightened up from his usual comfortable slouch, clearly concerned, and it made tears spring to eyes.

"I'm fine, sir, just tired." She turned away, trying to wipe at her eyes without him seeing it.

"No, you're not fine." Reynarden must have stood up because he gently grasped her shoulders the next moment, just like he always did when he wanted to comfort her, but wasn't sure she'd let him. "What do you need?"

Turning, she clung to him, burying her face in his shoulder. "Just hold me."

His arms wrapped around her, holding her close. "Gladly."

They stood like that for several minutes. Elara breathed in Reynarden's scent, reassured by both it and his presence in her arms that he _was_ real, that he'd survived. Lifting her head, she told him, "I've missed you so much."

"I missed you, too," he replied, kissing her cheek. "I should have looked for you sooner, too."

"Why didn't you?" Elara stepped back a pace so they could look at each other without craning their necks. She'd been so busy berating herself for giving up on Reynarden that she hadn't considered the fact that _he_ could have looked for _her_.

Shrugging, he said, "Well, at first, Arcann wanted me dead, so I didn't dare look for you. Not until he was dealt with. And then _Vaylin_ was looking for me, so same deal."

"That hasn't been the case for _months_ , though," she pointed out, unable to keep a little accusation out of her voice. She remembered clearly his broadcast when he announced that he'd taken the eternal throne. It'd been her first glimpse of him since he'd disappeared onto Darth Marr's ship. The moment she was alone, she'd locked herself into her office and let herself cry. "What stopped you?"

She didn't realize a tear had escaped until Reynarden gently wiped it away. "For the same reason you stopped searching for me: I had people depending on me. I couldn't abandon them so I could go find you."

"And that's why I love you," she told him with a small smile, catching his hand and giving it a squeeze. "You don't abandon your responsibilities."

He nodded, returning the squeeze. "Exactly. While I didn't imagine _this_ exactly when I joined the Army, I'm learning to work with it."

"I'll learn, too. We've spent too many years apart as it is." Elara sighed, stepping close so she could rest her head on his shoulder once again.

Reynarden gently rubbed her back. "Far too many. I love you, Elara."

"And I love you, Reynar." With that, he gently tilted her head so he could kiss her again. While their previous kiss had been sweet and chaste, more of an affirmation that they still wanted to pursue their relationship, _this_ kiss was more intense and passionate, expressing years of longing and worry and hope.

When they parted to catch their breath, an amused voice remarked from the doorway, "I didn't expect to walk in on _this_ familiar sight."

"Hello, Aric. Welcome back to Iokath." Reynarden chuckled, loosening his arms around Elara so she could turn and see Aric Jorgan standing in the doorway.

The black-furred Cathar was smiling, but it didn't reach his eyes. Elara pulled away from Reynarden enough to salute Aric. "Hello, Major Jorgan. It's good to see you again."

"Good to see you, too, Captain Dorne," Aric replied, returning the salute. He looked from her to Reynarden and back again. "You two belong together. I'm glad it finally happened. We'll catch up later. I have a feeling you two still have some catching up to do."

The arm Reynarden had kept around her waist tightened briefly. "Yes, we do, but I won't monopolize Elara."

"Good to know." Aric nodded to them and left.

Elara leaned against Reynarden, slipping her arm around his waist. "I knew he'd joined the Alliance, but I didn't expect him to come to Iokath, too."

"I asked him to come after I met with you and Major Quinn," Reynarden told her. "He wasn't sure what had happened to you, so I figured he'd want to at least see you."

She managed a small smile. Aric had become a good friend and supported her the most in her search for Reynarden. Until she was reassigned to Malcolm's personal staff and he was given command of Havoc Squad. She gave Reynarden a light squeeze. "Perhaps we should continue catching up?"

Reynarden looked at Elara, startled for a moment. Then a sly smile appeared. "My quarters or yours?"

"Yours. They're more likely to be better than mine." She smiled coyly at him.

He chuckled and they started walking from her office. "That's one of the perks of being the commander of the Eternal Alliance."

"I'm sure."

*

Later, as they lay tangled together under the sheets, Reynarden asked, "Why didn't you send me a message? Once you _knew_ I was alive."

"I was afraid." Elara pressed closer to him, one hand over his heart to feel the steady beat. "Afraid that you'd found someone else. After all, _you_ hadn't contacted _me_ at all."

He tightened his arms around her and kissed her temple. "I was afraid of the same thing. It'd been five years. I worried that you'd given up and found someone else."

"Who else would want a stuffy former Imperial like me?" Elara asked, shifting so she could look at him. "You were the first person who didn't automatically suspect me of being a double agent. You accepted me. That's still rare. And--" she cupped his cheek, smiling fondly at him. "I love you. That won't change."

Reynarden smiled sadly, turning his head to press a kiss to her palm. "I love you, too, Elara. I wish we'd found each other again sooner."

"What matters is that we've found each other _now_. It's no use wishing otherwise." She shifted so she could kiss him properly, sweet and tender.

He nodded when she eased back, the sadness gone from his smile. "You're right." He poked at the hololocket she'd refused to take off. "What's in here?"

"Something to help me keep going when-- well." Elara sat up and reluctantly removed it. He needed to see it.

Sitting up as well, Reynarden took the hololocket and turned it on. He smiled at the first image: the two of them on their wedding day. He looked very dashing in his tuxedo and Elara remembered how beautiful she'd felt in her dress. It'd been a wonderful day with their squadmates, families and a few friends to celebrate with them. He smiled at her, "You're so beautiful, Elara, no matter what you're wearing."

"Flatterer." She bit her lip and pressed the button to advance it to the next image. A soft, wounded sound escaped Reynarden as if he'd been punched in the gut. They were wearing regular civilian clothes and he held their two-year-old daughter while their four-year-old son stood in front of them.

Reynarden stared at the image for a long moment, blue eyes bright with unshed tears. "Jaxon. Aleksa. Stars, how old are they now?"

"Twelve and ten." Elara pressed the button to advance it to the last image. She stood with their children on either side of her. Jaxon was close to her height, his smile bright and playful. Aleksa was shorter, not quite hitting her mother's shoulder, barely smiling at all.

Reynarden's hand began to shake so badly that the image destablized. Elara quickly took the hololocket and held it so he could look his fill. Finally, the tears he'd been struggling to hold back spilled over and he began to cry in earnest. Elara set the hololocket aside and pulled him into a tight hug. He clung to her as he began to sob. As she stroked his back and shoulders, she cried, too, mourning the six years they'd lost as a family.

*

"Hi, Mom, Dad." Reynarden smiled sheepishly when his parents answered their holo.

Florya Drondil smiled brightly at her son. "Rey! It's about time you contacted us!"

"We've been worried, son," Bryden Drondil added, stern despite his smile. "No word except that you're now in charge of this Eternal Alliance and that we saw in your broadcast!"

Reynarden resisted the impulse to scuff his toe against the decking like he was Jaxon's age all over again. "I'm sorry. I don't have any excuse for not contacting you sooner."

"You look well," Florya remarked, tapping her chin with the tip of one finger. "A trifle exhausted. Are you getting enough sleep?"

He glanced at Elara, who'd been standing out of range of the video pick up. She smiled and moved to stand beside him. Kissing her cheek, he told his parents, "I am now."

"Now _that's_ a beautiful sight," Bryden commented with a grin. "We've all missed you, Rey."

A lump suddenly formed in Reynarden's throat and he couldn't speak. He looked at Elara beseechingly. She turned to her in-laws. "Where are Jax and Aleks?"

"With their tutors," Florya told them while Bryden gestured to someone out of range of the video pick up. "Jax is so much like you, Rey. I feel like I'm raising you all over again."

Reynarden nodded, clearing his throat. "I hope Aleks hasn't been as moody as Fio was when we were younger."

"No, she's just reserved," Bryden replied, his glance going to Elara, who squeezed Reynarden's hand gently.

Both Bryden and Florya turned as a young voice piped up, "You wanted to see us, Grandma and Grandpa?"

"You have a holocall, Jax, Aleks," Florya told them.

Aleksa answered as the image shifted and reformed to show the children standing in front of their grandparents. "Is it Mummy?"

"Jax, Aleks." Reynarden barely managed to croak their names, staring at his son and daughter longingly. Jaxon, almost thirteen now, had Elara's blonde hair and green eyes and looked a _lot_ like his Uncle Aleksei. On the other hand, Aleksa, almost eleven, had inherited Reynarden's brown hair and blue eyes. "Oh, _stars_ , you've grown."

A bright smile lit up Jaxon's face. "Dad! Hi!"

"H'lo, Daddy," Aleksa added, pressing close to Florya. "Are you _really_ there with Mummy?"

Elara leaned over and kissed Reynarden's cheek. "Yes, Aleks, we're both here."

"Where have you been, Daddy?" Aleksa demanded, glaring at him. "Mummy said you were MIA, and then she said--"

Florya knelt and gently drew Aleksa into a hug. "Shhh, Aleks."

"Let her be angry, Mom," Reynarden told her. "I should have gotten in touch sooner, but I was distracted by the Eternal Alliance."

Jaxon piped up, "Are you _really_ in charge of the Eternal Fleet now, Dad?"

"I am." Reynarden nodded. "It's why I can't move back to Coruscant, at least right now."

Jaxon's face took on a stubborn expression that reminded Reynarden of Fiosynod. "Then we'll go to where you are!"

"I'd like that more than anything else in the galaxy, Jax, but it's too dangerous here for you and Aleks." Reynarden longed to hold his children in his arms again.

"I'm brave!" Jaxon retorted, looking to be on the verge of pouting.

Reynarden shook his head, but Elara was the one who responded. "It's not a question of bravery, Jax. We don't want you or Aleks in danger."

"As soon as I can, I'm going to give up the Eternal Fleet," Reynarden told all of them. "In the short term, I'll find time to visit as soon as I can."

Aleksa gave him a stern look eerily reminiscent of both her mother and her grandmother. "You better, Daddy."

"Aleks!" Bryden sounded surprised. "Is that any way to talk to your father?"

Reynarden waved his father off. "She has a very good reason to be mad at me, Dad." He focused on his daughter. "Aleks." Reluctantly, she looked at him. "I'm sorry I've been gone all this time. I'll do my best to make up for it, somehow."

"I love you, Dad, Mum," Jaxon told them.

He smiled, not bothering to hold back his tears. "I love you, too, Jax. And you, Aleks."

"Hmph, nice to know where _we_ rate," Bryden muttered, blue eyes twinkling despite his words.

Florya swatted his shoulder playfully. "We love you, too, Rey. Stay safe."

"As best I can, Mom," Reynarden replied. "I love you both and I'll keep in touch."

"Love you, Daddy," Aleksa murmured just before they cut the connection.

Without a word, Reynarden turned and hugged Elara tightly, crying once more.

*

Aleksei Dorne held Jaxon and Aleksa's hands as he followed Mr. and Mrs. Drondil into the safehouse where they were supposed to meet Elara and Reynarden. He'd been a little put out that he'd missed their first holocall. Of course, they couldn't have known he was working. Besides, he got to talk to them when they called again later. Naturally, holocalls could only do so much. Not surprisingly, Reynarden wanted to hold his children again, speak with all of them without worrying about someone listening in.

So, over the course of several months, and assisted by Theron Shan, they arranged to meet on a neutral world near the edge of Wild Space. Only two people besides them knew exactly _where_ they were meeting and neither of them would tell. In the confusion of entering the house and ensuring they had all of their things, Aleksei lost his grip on Jaxon, who darted ahead of them and into the living room. "Dad! Mum!"

"Jax!" Reynarden exclaimed, sounding more than pleased. "It's wonderful to see you."

"Go ahead, Aleksei," Bryden told him, giving him and Aleksa a nudge.

Smiling gratefully at him, Aleksei walked with his niece into the living room. Elara and Reynarden sat side-by-side on a couch, Jaxon already nestled against Reynarden's other side. "Hello, Elara, Reynarden."

"Hello, Aleksei." A rare warm smile spread across Elara's face as she stood up to greet her brother with a hug. Then she turned to hug Aleksa. "Hello, Aleks. Come say hi to your father."

Reluctantly, Aleksa let her mother steer her over to the couch. Reynarden scooted forward to sit on the very edge, gazing very seriously at his daughter. "Aleks. I'm sorry I haven't been there for you or your brother these past six years. I was a prisoner of Zakuul for five of them, and then on the run from Arcann and Vaylin."

"I saw your broadcast," she told him accusingly. "We all did. What took you so long?"

He smiled wryly, glancing at Elara for a moment before looking at Aleksa. "Now that, I have no excuse for not contacting you besides getting distracted by the Eternal Alliance. Your mother reminded me that I have more important people in my life: you and Jax." He looked up to glance at the rest of them. "All of you."

"Did you mean it when you said you were going to give up the Alliance?" Florya asked, moving closer with Bryden right behind her.

Reynarden nodded firmly. "Absolutely. I can't help raise my children if I'm stuck in Wild Space."

"Daddy." Sniffling, Aleksa closed the remaining distance between them and flung her arms around Reynarden's neck.

He hugged her tight, pressing his face into her brown hair for several moments. He kissed the top of her head and sat back on the couch. Aleksa immediately curled up on his other side. Elara gave a soft, amused huff that she'd lost her spot to her daughter. "Everyone have a seat. I'll go get some snacks."

"Would you like some help?" Aleksei offered. He rarely got to speak with Elara alone, even though it'd been years since either of them had been considered a 'person of concern' by the SIS or anyone else in the Republic.

She stared at him for a moment before nodding. "Yes, thank you, Aleksei." They walked into the kitchen together and Elara reached into the fridge for containers of food. "How are you? We haven't really talked about you when we've called."

"To be fair, Reynarden has a lot of time to make up with Jax and Aleks." Aleksei dug through the cabinets until he found a platter and set it on the counter. Elara pulled a box out of the pantry and handed it to him. When he opened it, he found crackers inside. He began piling them around the small container of dipping sauces and cheeses Elara had set in the middle of the platter. "As for me, I'm fine. Work is fine. Now that your husband has control of the Eternal Fleet, most of my work has been focused on the Sith Empire again."

Elara nodded, arranging various deli meats around the crackers. "Of course. I'm sure the SIS is glad to have you working on that again."

"Naturally." Aleksei accepted the fruit Elara handed him and began to slice it into bite-sized pieces. "Bryni in particular is happy about it because my hours are more reasonable again."

She chuckled and arranged the fruit in the gaps she'd left between the meat. "I imagine anyone would be happier about more reasonable hours."

"Hello, Aleksei." He froze as he washed the knife and cutting board he'd used. He knew that voice. It'd been years, but he'd never forgotten it.

Slowly, he set the knife and cutting board aside and turned off the water. Still moving slowly, he turned towards the doorway to see not only his father, but his mother as well, both staring at him. Elara looked from their parents to Aleksei and back again. "Mother, Father. It's been a long time."

"Aleksei, I'm so happy to see you." Dr. Moira Dorne took a step towards him, and then stopped, biting her lip.

Commander Vasil Dorne lightly rested a hand on her shoulder. "We both are, Aleksei. It's been a long time."

"What are you doing here?" Aleksei asked, and then glanced at his sister, who'd quietly continued arranging the fruit on the platter, and realized she wasn't surprised in the slightest. "Did you know?"

Elara nodded, biting her lip as well. Vasil answered the question, "She did. We joined the Alliance because we agreed that Zakuul was the bigger threat."

"They haven't been for months now. What are you doing _here_?" Aleksei folded his arms across his chest. Part of him was very happy to see his parents, but most of him was wary.

Moira took another step towards him, her gaze imploring. "We wanted to see you, Aleksei. It's been years and we missed you."

"It took a bit for us to figure out that Reynarden had married Elara," Vasil added, his hand sliding down to rest on Moira's back. "Then he brought her back from Iokath and she told us you were still alive."

That startled Aleksei and he glanced at Elara, who nodded slightly. "You thought I was dead?"

"We'd been told you were MIA," Moira told him simply.

He nodded, resigned. In the Empire, MIA might as well mean KIA. "It was a mission gone wrong on Nar Shaddaa. I sent Elara a message because I couldn't think of anyone else who might possibly help."

"How could I not?" Elara interjected then, reaching over to squeeze Aleksei's hand. "He's my brother and he needed help I could provide. I'd been transferred to Havoc Squad by then and Reynar told me to go help Aleksei before I could even ask. He even went with me."

Aleksei shrugged when their parents looked at him. "What else could I do? Any other option would have meant death or a life in prison. So, I defected, and so did my men."

"I, for one, am very glad you're alive and well, regardless of how it came about." Moira took another step towards him, unshed tears glimmering in her eyes."

He closed the remaining distance between them and hugged his mother tight. He'd missed her. Both of them, really. It was scarcely another moment before Vasil added himself to the hug, wrapping both Moira and Aleksei in his arms.

*

Reynarden looked up from listening to Aleksa talk about her Science Club when Elara returned from the kitchen with a platter of food. "Here's something to tide us over until dinner."

"Where's Aleksei?" Florya asked, looking around curiously as Jaxon and Aleksa began picking at the selection of crackers, lunch meats, fruit, and cheese. "Getting drinks?"

Elara nodded, taking the vacated spot next to Reynarden. "Yes, the drinks are coming."

Slipping his arm around her waist, Reynarden leaned in to whisper a question in her ear. "How'd it go?"

"As well as could be expected," she whispered back, leaning into him and kissing his cheek.

Reynarden nodded and turned his attention to Aleksa, who'd resumed her place on his other side. "So, is there a science you find particularly interesting, Aleks?"

"All of them," she answered promptly, completely serious as she took a bite of one of the cracker sandwiches she'd painstaking constructed.

Jaxon, sitting between his grandparents now, began to giggle. "You can't like them _all_ , Allie."

"Why not?" She pouted at her brother. "They're _all_ fascinating."

Reynarden gently stroked her hair. "It's alright, Aleks. Maybe when you're older, one of them will stand out."

"For now, study whatever you want," Elara added, leaning forward so she could see her daughter.

Aleksa scooted forward to look at her mother. "How did _you_ choose to be a medic, Mummy?"

"Well, _my_ mother was a doctor and I liked the idea of helping people that way," Elara explained with a small smile. "I also wanted to serve in the Imperial military like my father and brother, so becoming a military medic seemed like the best compromise."

Jaxon frowned for a moment, and then smiled brightly. "But then you decided the Republic was better, right?"

"On the whole, I felt the Republic suited me better than the Empire." Elara nodded, her smile turning sad. "If I hadn't defected, I wouldn't have met your father."

He smiled fondly and kissed her cheek. "I don't even want to _think_ about what life would be like if we hadn't met."

"Neither do I," Elara agreed, leaning into him.

Aleksa pressed closer on Reynarden's other side. "Me an' Jax wouldn't be here for one."

"That's 'Jax and I', Allie," Bryden corrected gently. "I, personally, am glad to have Elara as a daughter-in-law."

" _Both_ of us are," Florya added with a mock-glare for her husband. "I'm also glad that she was able to talk Aleksei into defecting. It's been very nice to have him as part of our lives."

"Thank you, Florya. I'm flattered you like me," Aleksei commented from the kitchen doorway.

When they turned to look at him, the others froze because Vasil and Moira stood behind their son. After a few moments of stunned silence, Bryden asked, "Who are you?"

Moving forward with the tray of drinks, Aleksei made the introductions: "Everyone, I'd like you to meet my parents, Vasil and Moira Dorne. Mother, Father, you know Elara's husband, Reynarden. The others are his parents, Bryden and Florya Drondil, and his children with Elara: Jaxon and Aleksa."

"You're Mummy and Uncle Aleksei's parents?" Jaxon asked, standing up to address them.

Vasil nodded while Moira answered the question, "Yes, we are, Jaxon."

"Grandma! Grandpa!" Jaxon exclaimed, charging forward and flinging his arms around her in an enthusiastic hug. After a startled moment, Moira hugged him back. Vasil lightly rested his hand on Jaxon's back and he shifted to hug his grandfather.

"I was under the impression that your parents were still in the Empire," Florya remarked as Aleksei handed around the drinks.

As Jaxon guided his newly-introduced grandparents over to sit on the couch that had remained empty until then, Elara explained, "They _were_ , but they decided to join the Alliance well before Acina offered her help."

"It took a bit before I met them," Reynarden added with a sheepish smile. "The Alliance grew so fast that it was impossible for me to keep up with all of the new faces."

Moira picked up the explanation, her plate of food carefully balanced on her lap. "Eventually, he came to the medbay while I was on duty because he'd hurt himself doing handsprings." Reynarden smiled sheepishly at the exasperated looks from his parents. "I wrapped his ankle, gave him some kolto for the pain and sent him on his way after telling him to stay off of it for the next day or so."

"Aric helped me to the medbay, and talking with her was a little strange because she sounded so much like Elara." Reynarden smiled tenderly at her. "I even said 'dear' at one point instead of 'doctor'."

Moira nodded, chuckling. "That certainly puzzled me at first, but when he came back in for me to check his foot, he finally got around to asking for my name." She looked a little sheepish. "I'd forgotten that we didn't wear nametags."

"Naturally, I was surprised when she said her last name was Dorne," Reynarden nodded to Moira. "We quickly figured out that we're related by marriage and she introduced me to Vasil."

"After Iokath, Reynar and I traveled to Odessan and he insisted I go to the cantina with him," Elara interjected then. "I'm not one for cantinas usually, but I humored him. It turns out, he'd arranged for Mother and Father to meet us there and I was absolutely floored when I saw them waiting for us."

Aleksei smiled, reaching up to wipe at his eyes. "I'm sure more than a few tears were shed."

"Of course." Elara nodded.

"What are your plans now?" Bryden asked in the silence that followed, looking at Vasil and Moira a little suspiciously.

Vasil smiled sadly. "We can't return to the Empire. Not after what happened on Iokath."

"We won't join the Republic," Moira added, finishing her plate of food. "We'll remain with the Alliance until there's nothing more we can do to help."

Florya raised her eyebrows, obviously skeptical. "What about after?"

"Then we'll find some neutral planet to settle down so we can still see our children and grandchildren." Vasil seemed amused by their suspicion.

Moira gently stroked Jaxon's hair. He'd remained between his two new grandparents, happily munching on his snack. "We've missed too many years with them already. We have no desire to miss more."

"Fio's met them. He assured me that they're sincere," Reynarden added firmly, hoping to allay any further suspicions."

That did the trick. Both Bryden and Florya visibly relaxed. "Please forgive our suspicions, Mr. and Mrs. Dorne."

"My name is Moira," she told them with a small smile. "Please call me that, Mrs. Drondil."

"And I'm Florya."

Reynarden relaxed as the two sets of parents began to get to know each other. Elara leaned into his side, murmuring, "This is going better than I hoped."

"I'm very relieved," he murmured back, kissing her cheek.

**Author's Note:**

> Vasil Dorne _does_ exist in-game, though it's not explicitly stated if or how he's related to Elara. Imperial Agents used to talk to him when they actually couldn't choose operative or sniper until level 10. I went with the assumption that he's her father. Moira Dorne is completely made-up and I gave her the name Moira because Elara's VA is named Moira, so I thought it fitting. I also assumed that Aleksei had a handler after defecting, like Elara had Captain Kallor. Unlike him, though, Aleksei's handler was reasonable. A red-skinned Nautolan named Bryni, the two of them became involved once he was no longer her charge.


End file.
